This past weekend, Portland’s own MusicFestNW took place in the Tom McCall Waterfront Park, featuring two days of music, art and food.

The most important thing to understand about MusicFestNW is that it is very different from other big name music festivals today. Unlike Sasquatch! Festival and San Francisco’s Outside Lands, MusicFestNW manages to be intimate and low-key. The festival has only two stages, placed at opposite ends of the park, which only takes up a few city blocks, the majority of the attendees appear to be mostly sober and tickets were $65-125 for a day pass and up to $300 for a two day ticket. If you go, leave your flower crown at home and enjoy the vibes that no doubt inspired Portlandia.

The festival started off slow on Saturday as Portlanders and visitors alike eased their way into the festival. Thanks to the weekly Saturday Market, the area along Portland’s downtown Waterfront was packed with some of the best food and top names in alternative snacks and smoking goods.

The first concert of the day, LandLady, had few spectators, but rocked the stage regardless. Most surprisingly, the crowd at the event ranged from college aged festival goers to the age group that could also be represented by that of their parents.

As the first concert transitioned into the next, the crowd made its first of many migrations from the Moda stage at Morrison to the American Apparel stage at Hawthorne, a unique and intimate set up for the still growing festival.

Thundercat, a personal favorite from the earlier acts, jazzed up the stage for the second performance at the Moda stage, entertaining the crowd. There is something to be said for a musical set in a festival, and a separate notion to be made for he who can both preform his tunes and captivate the crowd simultaneously.

Future Islands were a knockout, and surely a band that those previously unfamiliar will follow. The band played song after song with the tempo of the crowd, both introducing each song and adding just the right amount of inspiration and small talk in between each set proving to be just the band you want to see in concert.

The group who took the gold for the day was Run the Jewels a rap duo who effortlessly commanded attention of everyone in the crowd. Their style was playful as they cracked jokes while their DJ cut up a well-mastered set of beats that dropped just as hard as their presence on the stage. The duo could do nothing less than remind one of the dynamic Rob & Big pairing, with the same humor that forced even the most stone-cold to let out a chuckle.

As for the biggest acts, Phantogram took the cake with a great second to last performance at the event. The band, who is becoming increasingly popular, didn’t overdo it on the lighting and effects, but boy did lead female vocalist Sarah Barthel look smokin’ in her black leather pant and jacket outfit.

Girl Talk, ended the night with a performance that was energetic and set with effects and lighting that was a saving grace for the performer. As the DJ cut in lines like “turn down for what,” and over a handful from Snoop Dog and Outkast, the drop for many of the songs hit too on the electronic side hindering the crowd from an experience to get wild. On the positive side, the cuts with Snoop and Biggie tied with a slight mix-up gave the crowd the bit of a jam that made the $65 day pass worth the money.

Sunday continued with an impressive lineup of bands, including Portland’s own Wild Ones, as well as The Antlers and Tune-Yards. Big name groups Haim and Spoon headlined the night.

Haim, an LA rock band consisting of three sisters, played a catchy and energetic set as the sun set over the Portland skyline. I’ve heard that some bands make music for the performing aspect and some for the process of recording albums. Haim is all about performing. Breaking into several minute drum and guitar jams, the three sisters effortlessly played off each other as if Waterfront Park was their living room (a joke they indeed made.)

Afterward, the crowd made their way past the Bunk Sandwiches food cart, the American Apparel sale tent and the poster booth to gather for Spoon. With the recent release of their newest studio album, They Want My Soul, the veteran band is receiving 20 years of due credit for their rock ‘n roll abilities. Onlookers from a nearby bridge looked on the Moda Stage as a relaxed crowd bounced to the band’s killer guitar work, on-point harmonies and unique voice of lead singer Britt Daniel.